FIRST CALL FOR PAPERS AND PANELS -
-  please circulate -



The Second Tampere Conference on Narrative,
"NARRATIVE, IDEOLOGY, AND MYTH",
June 26-28, 2003, Tampere.


Guest speakers: Lisa Jane Disch (Minnesota,)
Mark Freeman (Holy Cross, Worcester)
Liz Stanley (Manchester)

Program committee: Kathy Davis (Utrecht), Olivia Guaraldo
(Verona), Margaret Heller (Kings College, Halifax), Annabel Herzog (Haifa),
Kia Lindroos (Jyväskylä), John S. Nelson (Iowa), Shelley Day Sclater (East
London), Maureen Whitebrook (Sheffield), Matti Hyvärinen (Jyväskylä, chair).

Over the last three decades, the concept of narrative has successfully
traveled from the humanities to social, psychological and political studies
- and to many other disciplines. The "narrative turn" raises questions
about the relation between ideology and narrative. Recent critical
literature considers narratives from the perspectives of power and
persuasion; some emphasize the normative nature of narratives. Others, most
notably empirical work in women's studies, health studies and sociology,
typically assume an emancipatory potential for narratives; storytelling is
seen as a form of emancipation, or "giving a voice" to otherwise silenced
groups.

Different approaches work with different theories and definitions of
narrative. The field is characterized and energized by diversity. This
conference explores this diversity, and particularly focuses on
non-normative ways of discussing narrative and narrativity. Papers will
address the issue of social, cultural and political circulation of
narratives, and the different forms narrativity takes, and the signifigance
it assumes, within social action.

We intend to address the "murky side" of narrative: the issues of myth and
persuasive stories. "Myth" as a core narrative can constitute the seductive
yet hidden structure of social or political theories, of news releases, and
of personal life stories. But we would also question the opposition between
the apparent clarity of the concept of narrative and the 'darkness of the
myth'. Is it possible for us to rethink our cultural and political
belongings so that they take the form of a constantly re-narrated story, as
a founding myth without an origin?

The core of narrative - and its social and political importance - lies in
the fact that it remains bound to a partiality of perspective, and thus
must reject any form of abstract universalism. At first, this seems to
contrast 'theory', 'concept' and 'narrative', but we also insist on
exploring the possibilities of narrative theorizing. How is it possible to
denounce the false universalism without falling prey to 'community'
-determined identities? Can we feature storytelling as a weak form of
universalism?

We will ask whether narrative can help us to understand subjectivity as a
form of social and political agency always in relation with others, as
agency that can exist outside the traditional boundaries of Politics.
Perhaps we should re-think subjectivity as a 'story', which is as such
always told (also) by someone else and is thus intrinsically relational.
This would raise the following questions: What is the relationship between
narrative and social, political, and cultural identities in times of
global, de-territorialized times and spaces. What is the relationship
between myth, storytelling and political identity in times of
globalization?

We invite all kind of narrative work that addresses these (and other) faces
of narrative. Papers that combine theoretical and empirical work on
narrative, those that have a genuinely interdisciplinary approach, and
papers that try to find narrative forms of theorizing will be particularly
welcome.

Papers might address the following themes (although the list is not
exhaustive):
- Narrative and social action
- Narrative and myth
- The persuasiveness of narrative
- Narrative, self and identity
- Narrative and memory politics
- Artistic, political and professional uses of narrative
- The significance of narrative for nation-building
- Narrating trauma - narration as witnessing
- Mythical and ideological bodies
- The emancipatory function of narrative
- Dangerous narratives - the (mis)use of myths
- The social, cultural and political circulation of narratives
- Narratives of belonging and dispossession
- Narratives as a new way of theorizing in social and political theory

To apply, please send a 300-350 word abstract (as a message, not as an
attached file) to: [log in to unmask] and  [log in to unmask]
Deadline for applications (papers and panels): March 1, 2003.
Conference fee: ¤ 120/60 (lower for research students). The conference web
site http://www.uta.fi/conference/narrative will be open in October 2002.
The conference venue is Tampere Hall, right in the city center of Tampere.
Two pre-conference doctoral courses will be organized. Further information
will be found from our web site.

Organizers:
- University of Tampere, Research Institute for Social Sciences &
Department of Sociology and Social Psychology, Department of Women Studies.
- Finnish Network of Narrative Studies
- Politics and the Arts Group (Standing Group of the European Consortium
for Political Research)

Professor Matti Hyvärinen
Dept. of Social Sciences and Philosophy
P.O. Box 35, 40014
FIN-40014 University of Jyvaskylä, Finland
Tel: +358-14-260 307(work); +358-40-822 4045 (GSM)